She’s Alive!

So… You’d think “she’s been away so long she must have given birth already” well… you’d be wrong. The baby seems totally comfortable where he is and doesn’t seem to have any plans to arrive any time soon. Which is annoying because he’s not even here and already ignoring me. The thing is though, If I was the baby, and I heard how lovely my mother has been lately and how patient she has been and how she has not at all been irrational, emotional, mental or incoherent I would be so excited to arrive!

I have not been wallowing in self-pity (at least not all the time) for the past month. I have actually been moving into our new house. We moved in while my husband was away (totally convinced I was going to give birth the second I was 37 weeks if not earlier) because I knew had I given birth before we moved in there was no way I would have done it. When my husband arrived and saw that the whole outside of the house was still a construction site he was less than impressed that we moved in so soon.

He soon got into the spirit of things though and before you knew it the house was filled with activity and boxes and more dust and things we had no idea what to do with. The amount of junk we have accumulated in the last, nearly, 10 years is impressive. What is even worse is that a lot of what we have accumulated is not junk! It’s stuff we want to keep. And seeing as the design of our house is modern and probably not very clutter friendly (and not big enough to hold all our clutter) we are in a bind!

We are trying as much as possible not to store too many things but we don’t have enough walls to hang our paintings or enough shelves to hold our books and those are the two most important things I don’t want to send to storage. We will have to find some sort of solution. Every space of free wall is being scrutinized and I am coming up with new and interesting places to put books.

We had so far one major leak, some electricity problems, a funky smell we couldn’t find the source of for a week and of course problems with contractors. But right now, as I sit in my living room listening to the construction workers right outside my window discussing God knows what in their native tongue, I look around and I feel happy. Alhamdullilah. I love my house. And I do not regret moving in even though we wake up everyday to the sound of banging and sawing and we end every night cleaning a film of dust that settles on EVERYTHING because of the work around the house, knowing that tomorrow evening the dust will return and every evening after that until the outside of the house is finally done.

Every day there are less and less boxes and the place looks more put together. The kids are over the moon about their bedrooms. The baby’s room could possibly be the most boring baby room on the face of the earth (it’s grey and white and I love it) but I have added colored cushions from zara home (If you call blue and white and grey colored) and will buy some wall decals from Kidorable (amazing children’s shop in Nujoud shopping center) which will make all the difference.

I’ll leave you with an image of what my evening will be all about.

Oh the irony! Keep in mind I am sitting in the middle of the room so there is an equal amount of books behind me as well!

10 comments

I swear you are going to make me cry :( There was a plan to give birth in London but my doctor said I can’t travel because I left it too late and I may go into labor early… I’m in my 39th week… I could cry! Kiss London and Regents park for me!! You are so lucky mashalla! And thank you! Huge compliment to put my post, London and Regents park on the same level lol.

It would have been lovely if you could have come here. The weather is so warm I feel like I’m back home. Come as soon as you can after the baby inshallah! Its ironic that you said I was lucky, because sometimes when I read your blog and see how you are surrounded by family and friends, it makes me homesick! The grass is always greener..

Inshallah that’s the plan if all goes well. It’s been over a year since I was in London and feel like I am going through withdrawal lol. Il7amdlilah it is always good to have your family around you, true.

WELCOME BACK!!!! You have been dearly missed!!!! Was wondering what in the world was going on.. lol.. well welcome back to Riyadh ;) Your problems sounds like the same ones i have INCLUDING the funky smell.. it took about 3 months to finally fi that issue.. (THANK GOD)… I have more books then I know what to do with.. and I refuse to part with even one.. so they sit in boxes till I find some sort of solution.. loool…. ahhh.. I need to THINK!

Anyway.. glad your back.. hope the little ones are well enshallah…. and I pray that the remainder of your pregnancy goes smoothly enshallah <3

Helloooo Om Lujain! Thank you for the welcome :-) Been reading your blog when I need a break and happy to see how active you’ve been.
We didn’t exactly find the source of the smell but it comes and goes and so I easily forget it till the next time it stinks… How lazy is that.
Thank you for the prayer. I will make an effort to post more often and God willing, in my next few posts will be a birth announcement.

Hello from Mama B

Hi! I'm Bessma and this is my little blog. I started it 2010 as a place to think out loud about parenting 3 Arab Muslim children in this day and age. It has since developed into a more informed thinking out loud about parenting 5 Arab Muslim children in this day and age.